Kalimon - An Overview

An overview of the world of Kalimon, including a summary of its history and the inhabitants. This is still a work-in-progress setting and more details may be added at a later date.

Kalimon

Kalimon is a world rich in natural resources and magical elements (the meta part of magical forces that can blend with almost anything else on the world of Kalimon). All life forms on Kalimon have some affinity to magic. As a matter of fact, magical elements flow in and out of life forms on their own accords (in small amounts) and provide very minor and random benefits to the life forms (increasing their strength, health, intelligence etc.) when they flow past. Magic can be used in two alternative ways. For intelligent beings, body parts or even organs can be strengthened through a controlled infusion of magical elements and subsequently directing these to travel to specific parts of the body. Alternatively, magic can be manipulated to interact with the external environment.

Inhabitants

The Alliance

Humans

Social status in the human society is determined solely by individuals’ ranks within their occupations. There is a guild for each occupation and individuals commonly have two occupations, one relating to combat and the other relating to crafts.

Average life span: 65 years
Fertility rate: high
Versatility to external environment: Human bodies have the lowest tolerance for extreme climates amongst races of the Alliance. However, in compensation, they have the adaptation abilities within this narrow tolerance range. They are also the most balanced in terms of living in and warring across a range of different terrains.

Elves and Dwarves

They are pretty much as commonly described in fantasy except that dwarfs can practice magic in the same way as all other races on Kalimon

Average life span: 2000-3000 years
Fertility rate: low
Versatility to external environment: Elven and dwarven bodies have the highest tolerance for extreme climates but they adapt less quickly to such extremes. In addition, dwarves tend to adapt better to hotter climates whereas elves are as able to tolerate extremely high temperatures versus extremely low temperatures. Elves have an advantage in forests and plains (and for some particular groups, locations of more extreme climates conditions) as well as climbing mountains. Dwarves have an advantage in cave-like or underground surroundings but do not deal well with high-elevation terrains.

Clans of the Choca

“Choca? Choca is what give birth to us, Choca is the sun, the moon, the leaves, the water, the wind, the seasons.”

~ Words from a member of the Clans

Those of the Clans are commonly referred to beast-men in various tongues. They are creatures that have a human torso or an entire human body from the neck downwards but with other body parts that match up to a specific type of animal. The largest clans are The Narasims (lion head, human body), The Karasus (tiger head, human body), The Centaurs, The Brotaurs (human head, body of ox/bull) and The Tanguris (boar head, human body). Each clan of the Choca is composed of many tribes, all of them having individual territories. Tribe members roam freely by day in land claimed by the Clans but usually settle down within tribe territory at night.

Average life span: 50 years
Fertility rate: highest amongst the Alliance
Versatility to external environment: Average in terms of tolerance range for and adaptability to (extreme) climates. The Clans have an advantage in whatever terrain native to the species that the beastly part of them belong to as well as minor advantage in plains.

Youlini

The true forms of these shape shifters are either animals or less commonly, plants. Their shape-shifting abilities are limited to one particular form only among the races belonging to the alliance (human, elves, dwarves and Clans of the Choca). However, they can vary their outlooks within this fixed form i.e. change gender, height, weight and other aspects in outward appearances at will (subject to their power levels). Within a given species, not all members are Youlini and some are merely common beasts or plants with low intelligence. Foxes, wolves, snakes, spiders and butterflies all have a high chance of becoming Youlini while plant Youlinis are mostly flowering plants.

Life forms that become Youlini are “inferior” with respect to their abilities of harnessing the magical elements on Kalimon. They benefit less from the natural flowing in of magical elements relative to other life forms. Also, eventually a ‘barrier’ arises that stops the magical elements from imparting further benefits to these life forms prone to becoming Youlini whereas the enhancement effects are cumulative and ever present for other creatures living in Kalimon. Yet, where one door closes, another window will open. These life forms have the capacity for developing shape-shifting abilities (although the ratio of these life forms actually becoming Youlini over their overall population is quite small). In particular, such shape-shifting abilities go further than just a change in outwards appearance. In a shape-shifted form, a Youlini no longer experience the issues with harnessing magical elements as in its true form.

Despite such advantages over other members of their species, the Youlinis still fall behind the other intelligent races on Kalimon. Hence, a portion of aspiring Youlinis has taken to living with a particular race of the Alliance to learn their ways of directing magical elements within the body.

Locations

Magic elements are both aplenty and active on the world of Kalimon. They affect not only life forms but also locations. On the world of Kalimon, there are both places of wondrous splendour and chilling horror. Below are a few locations of interests:

The Plain of Wail

The Plain of Wail is so named because of the Wailers, a carnivorous plant that emits a high-pitched sound that has a dazzling effect on insects, thus making them prone to capture by the tentacle-like branches stretching out from a Wailer stalk. It is situated roughly half way between the Elven settlement of Camborella and the human settlement of Tiieman. No elves would willingly set foot on this plain since the ‘call’ of the Wailers hurt their sensitive ears but there is a large volume of trade between humans (who are unaffected by the sounds Wailers make) and Camborella elves on Wailer pollen that is a popular ingredient in their diet* as well as the Sordo Bees^, a treat for the Zeklufts that these elves have domesticated for the purposes of scouting and hunting.

* Wailer pollen is stored in a sack-like component located towards the bottom of its central stalk and humans usually remove this sack-like component in its entirety and sell it to elves. Wailer pollen is sweet tasting with a slightly tangy flavour. It is commonly mixed in with other spices to create a unique salad dressing that Camborella elves enjoy. There is also a special Elven smoked dish made from pollen sacks containing sealed-in mushrooms.

^ Sordo Beeshave low hearing capacities and are therefore unaffected by the Wailers’ Call. They live off Wailer pollen and, in turn, help the reproduction of Wailers.

The Valley of Ohruon

Home to the largest settlement of elves, the Valley of Ohuron is spacious and teeming with plant life, many of which are unique to the Valley. The River of Crystal runs through its centre. Not only does this river provide sustenance to the inhabitant elves, it is also the basis for a major commodity of export- the Ohruon red. Water from the River of Crystal is viscous, almost jelly-like. It has a crisp, refreshing taste but contains small traces of salt and bitterness. The Ohruon red that is fermented from a mixture of fruit juices and water from the River of Crystal has a strong after-bite despite its delicate taste. It is a favourite for the Ohruon elves as well as having high demand from humans, particularly ladies (in a diluted form).

Yet, there is a place that creates a sense of foreboding in this peaceful haven. In the west end of the Valley, all plant lives abruptly come to an end in barren and cracked earth. No elves have ventured onto this part of the Valley as even laying eyes on it causes a sense of discomfort.

The Schtorren Glaciers

Far from where the Youlini clash against the Alliance, the Schtorren Glaciers are home to a society of elves believed to be forever lost on an exploring expedition and an intelligent race evolved from polar bears. The two races team together in a life of fishing and fighting off the menace from the foul Frost Owls and Pengumoths*, predators that have gained semi-intelligence.

* Monsters with a trunk of a mammoth ending in feet like a penguin instead of hoofs and a grotesque head like a vulture with bulging flesh-like lumps that slowly move around on their faces.

History

Being a resource rich world, Kalimon offered a peaceful and prosperous way of living for all known races. For each race, individuals lived in settlement clusters and trade occurred as commonly between clusters of the same race as between different races. Expeditions into new territories were still a necessity for the various races that thrived on Kalimon and disputes between them were few. However, the discovery of Youlinis who had been living amongst these races set changes in motion. Unease settled in but did not cause any major changes at first. But then, dark stories were whispered of a Youlini conspiracy and thus began the War of Conspiracy (or The Persecution as known to the Youlinis). It ended with all living Youlinis not hunted down by the Alliance retreating entirely from Alliance settlements.

“
A debt in blood must be repaid in blood. And our places in this world have to be redeemed.” These were the words spoken when the Youlinis declared war on the Alliance generations later as they came out of hiding, in force. The ensuing tragedy of the Elementallion caused a dramatic reduction in the Alliance population and a general retreat to what is now named Thljafoap- The City for the People. As for the Youlinis, only time would reveal their fates to the Alliance or never at all…..

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Update: This sub is mainly put out to clarify terms used in my Elementallion stub and of course, to fulfill requirements for joining the Weavers Guild. So, as already mentioned in the summary, this is not an exhaustive sub on all details on this setting. If there are particular aspects people would like to know more about, put down a comment and I will respond.

First off, the good: You have some really interesting elements mixed in with some others that don't pop out for me as much. In particular, I liked the Clans of Choca and the Youlini. I've always had a weakness for high-magic worlds, and this sounds like a promising place for that.

Mostly, I just want MORE here. I want to know why the Youlini can only shapeshift into one humanoid form, and what you mean when you said they could "vary their outlook" by doing so. How long have the animals and plants been able to do this? Why do they even WANT to -- what drives them to live among the humanoids? Is there some sort of symbiosis at work here (they need to intermix/breed within their shapeshifted form in order to create more Youlini, perhaps?).

I want to know more about the "magical elements" inherent in the world, and how they are harnessed by humanoids and regular animals alike. I want some points of interest -- places I could send a party to adventure in this world. Are there other sentient beings on Kalimon besides those in the Alliance and the hostile Youlini? What gods do these people worship (or concepts, or ways of life, etc).

You've given us a really interesting core, and I really really want to see more of it.

I think I will expand Youlini section on this sub and maybe clarify the magic section a little more as well but in response to your queries:

1. I envision the true forms of Youlinis being somehow 'inferior life forms' in terms of harnessing the magical elements (either their bodies benefit less from the natural flowing in of magical elements or they reach some kind of bottleneck not existent to the humanoids with the magical elements). So shape-shifting is their attempt to attain a better life-form/body. As to why one humanoid form only, it's a very hard thing for these life forms to transition into a Youlini, let alone being able to shape-shift into multiple humanoid forms. Also, given the history, I was thinking if they could shape-shift into multiple forms, it's nearly impossible to hunt down Youlinis unless you catch them at the spot and kill them there. Eg. if you find out human A is a Youlini, you try to kill it, it escapes and then it turns into a dwarf, how will you find it? But if it can only take a particular race form, then at least when you find out there's a Youlini masquerading as a human, you can narrow your search by looking for only foreign faces amongst humans. As to wording issues, by "varying their outlook", I mean that if a Youlini shapeshifts into a human form, then it could make it into a man or a woman, tall or short, fat or thin etc. according to their wishes (and subject to their power, of course).

2. Abt harnessing magical elements, I'm envisioning that these magical elements on Kalimon are like air on Earth. It will flow into and out of life forms on its own accord and provide some kind of very very minor benefits to the lifeforms when they flow past. (I envision all the lifeforms on Kalimon that have an Earth equivalent being somewhat stronger, healthier, more intelligent etc.) When intelligent beings (aka humanoids) harness them, they have to consciously make the magical elements stay in their bodies and control where the elements go.

3. On locations of interest, unfortunately this part is absolutely blank at the moment. Maybe there will be some after I get some ideas on flora and fauna unique to Kalimon which are also blank sections on this world. Same goes for religions etc.

Update: As per request in comments, expanded the sub. Also, I just want to re-emphasise that this is still a fairly incomplete setting (the idea for the entire setting started with the world of Kalimon after Elementallion and I'm sort of working backwards in this sub here). But anyway, let me know how you think of the revised edition. I will provide further details if I have them to any comments put down.

Not all that original, I've seen most of it before, except for the Brotaurs. There's also a few things I found unclear. Can everyone/everything wield magic in this world? If so, that seems highly impractical. You mention these Choca, but don't go into detail on what/who they are.

Other than that, no typos, spelling/grammatical errors that I could see. Though I think I'll hold off a bit on voting, till you got some more content.

No, not everyone/everything can wield magic in this world. For non-intelligent beings (common animals and plants), most cannot though a few might develop some kind of magic-like abilities. For the intelligent races, it depends on how they 'use' magic. In the section titled Kalimon, I went thru the two uses of magic and individuals can use magic in both ways. The issue with using magic for them is really to choose the ratio for how they use the two alternative ways of manipulating magic for their personal developments. Basically, if one chose to use magic just to strengthen body parts, then he/she is pretty much a warrior (unless the strengthening is all for the brains and then maybe the person wants to be a scholar or sth) whereas if they choose the external manipulation path entirely, then he/she is a mage and of course, ppl can choose to be somewhere in between these two extremes. I will eventually do another sub just on magic in this setting which will cover all the points you and others raised.

I'm thinking of doing a minor edit on the inhabitants and update with a very rough Location section. Anyway, thanks for the comment.

Update: Expanded inhabitants section with additions of some stat. info. (I know some would say this doesn't really add value to the World but I wrote them anyway even if it's only good for my own ref.). Added Location section which gives me info. on some of the uniqueness aspect of Kalimon itself or its races.

Actually, I was so glad I could use your Frost Owls. I mean, as a Weaver Guild sub, I thought the locations section gave me a perfect opportunity to link to other ppl's subs and it was a bit of a shame really that I wanted another arctic monster that's large in size and so all the other existing arctic life forms on the Citadel didn't fit my requirements.

I'm glad you put in the extra detail here -- the place is really starting to come alive before our eyes! One quick question: did you mean to say that the dwarves adapt better to colder climates? Or are both the dwarves and elves competing for jungle and desert environs (an interesting idea)?

I meant the dwarves adapt better to hotter climates. In contrast, the elves are more balanced in adapting to both extremely hot and cold weathers. I fixed up the wording to make this more clear.

So far (up to the point of the War of Redemption), the Alliance races on Kalimon are not competing over terrain type yet b/c there are still unexplored parts on the World although the exploration expeditions have been sent out on a less frequent basis now (the races are at the stage of reinforcing the civilisation they've built rather than expanding territories)

I liked the descriptions of the magic and the locations. I do, however, think that the races themselves could use a bit of culture description. The basics, though, some unifying theme that make the elves more than longer lived humans. Do the elves have a blood-letting ritual every full moon based on the half-forgotten superstition of the Blood Demons who need nourishment lest they seek it out violently? Do the Choca have a universally celebrated sport that eerily resembles the sport that Americans call soccer, and the Europeans call Football? Do the Dwarves enjoy chariot racing with giant lizards (that have a useful habit of clawing fellow giant lizards)? I realize each group of each race is going to be different, since geographically isolated peoples are going to develop habits and phrases that other groups of the same race don't, but there would probably be some basic, underlying similarities or themes.

go to code view when you input your submission (click 1st button from the left on top row, the one that looks like pointy brackets- the ones above comma and fullstop on keyboards) and then enclose whatever text what you wanted to make into a big heading into the following 2 HTML tags: 1. <h1> 2. </h1> . Number 1 is the opening syntax and Number 2 is the closing syntax.